Theos-Talk Archives (November 2005 Message tt00078)

	OK, having had a bit to do with bylaws, I have to ask an obvious 
question: Even if those 4 members WERE legally members of the Narada 
Lodge, how the hell can those 4 members constitute a quorum under 
Narada's bylaws? How can Washington accept their word for it?

While Wheaton may not be blameless, the story as given is, frankly, 
ridiculous.

Bart

Eldon B Tucker wrote:

> I got a copy of the following message about problems at the Narada Lodge of
> the Adyar Theosophical Society (in Tacoma, Washington). After reading their
> web page describing the situation, at 
> http://www.thetheosophicalsocietyinamerica.org,
>
> I wrote them to clarify what they said, and following is what I understand
> to be the situation.
>
> The branch was chartered in 1890, obtained a charted from the Point Loma
> Society in 1895, and got another from the Adyar Society in 1899. It
> preexists the Theosophical Society in America (in Wheaton, Illinois); its
> bylaws have never conformed; and it voted in 1989 not to change the bylaws
> to conform with Wheaton. It was asked again in October 2004 to change its
> bylaws, but declined, after which its current problems started.
>
> > > From what I heard, Wheaton declared four people who were not lodge members
> to now belong to the lodge, after which the four (along with a former lodge
> member) held a special meeting, electing their own officers for the lodge
> and claiming they now were in charge of the lodge and in control of its
> property. Their claim is being backed up with a lawsuit that presumes they
> now represent the lodge and are suing on its behalf the lodge leadership
> they say they voted out of office.
>
> Say I were a president of a theosophical lodge and found out one day that
> the national section had added new members to my lodge. These members have a
> meeting without inviting current lodge members, hold an election, and vote
> me out of office. They now sue me, in the name of the lodge, to turn over
> control of its assets to them. If that were to happen, I certain wouldn't
> feel very happy about the situation. I'd especially feel bad if my lodge was
> a separate legal entity from the national section and was chartered before
> the national section was created as a legal entity.
>
> Perhaps there's another side to the story that we've not heard yet, with
> further information that better explains what is happening and why it might
> be considered a good idea. On first hearing about it, though, I have trouble
> seeing how someone could see this as a good thing to be doing.
>
> Eldon
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Narada Theosophical Society [mailto:naradasociety@peoplepc.com] 
> Sent: Monday, November 14, 2005 6:58 PM
> To: phxultlodge@gmail.com; mcdavid@uthscsa.edu; eleutherian51@yahoo.com;
> timestar@timestar.org; cjraby@earthlink.net; epelleti@telus.net;
> theosnw@theosophy-nw.org; editor@theosophy.com; AmSec@pacbell.net;
> fohat@planet.eon.net; edbl1@comcast.net; subaruza_31@hotmail.com;
> maurice.warnon@kingsgarden.org
> Subject: narada suit
>
> Wheaton sues officers of Tacoma Lodge on behalf of Wheaton's appointees.
> Please look at our web page, www.thetheosophicalsocietyinamerica.org
> We at Narada Theosophical Society are only interested in one thing, that is
> the study of theosophy as presented by the Masters and early founders of the
> Theosophical Movement. We have offered to work with Wheaton, but not under
> them. We have been autonomous since we chartered with William Q. Judge on
> April 28/29, 1895 as The Theosophical Society in America. We rechartered
> with the American Section, Adyar again Jan. 1899, with a clause in our
> Constitution giving us legal Autonomy, which they recognized. We were
> members of both Societies at the same time. We have been asked many times
> in our past to change our bylaws by Wheaton, but have declined, so as to not
> lose our grandfathered in charters in the societies. 
> John
>
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